Ep. 233: Jeffrey McHale – Director of You Don’t Nomi

Jeffrey McHale is the Director, Writer, Editor and Producer of You Don’t Nomi, a film described thusly: “A chorus of film critics and fervent devotees explore the complicated afterlife of 1995’s biggest film flop, Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls, from disastrous release to cult adoration and extraordinary redemption.”

In many ways, this documentary felt like it was made just for me. I was 14 when Showgirls was unleashed on the public, I recorded it off of Cinemax and watched it many times (although not for the reasons you think, perverts), and then become a huge fan of reading film criticism. To that end, this documentary is pure personal catnip. And when I watched it, I absolutely adored it.

I tried to put my fanboying aside (the degree to which I was successful, I’ll leave to you, the listener), and dig into what compelled Jeffrey to make this film, the interesting stylistic and technical challenges of creating a documentary where not a single frame of new footage was captured, the remarkable second (and third) life of Showgirls, and the all-encompassing weirdness of the film. Jeffrey is exceedingly friendly, filled with great insight, and was willing to indulge my gushiness.

You can follow You Don’t Nomi on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and its homepage. If you love Showgirls, hate it, like film criticism, or just enjoy a beautifully crafted documentary with lots and lots to say, be sure to check it out.